Super Fat Friend - Introduction

Welcome to a new era of serialized fiction.

I’ve been writing poetry, prose, and screenplays since I was eight years old. I still have some of those cringe-worthy original works. I always knew I’d end up in Los Angeles one day to make films and make money from all my writing, whether scripts or novels. Easy as pie, right?

Now, just over thirty years later, I did make it to Los Angeles, but the film industry is in shambles, and the publishing industry is now more gatekeepy than ever. I have wrestled with the reality that my ideas aren’t what these industries want (maybe not even what the world wants), and maybe I should just back off for a while. I know I’m not the only creative who feels this way.

However, as I felt called to pursue my master’s degree—clearly the voice of God because I certainly wasn’t planning to—I knew I couldn’t give up. Whether my audience was thousands, seventy-five, or none, I am always and forever a storyteller. Yet, how can we compete with so many voices trying to get that book or film deal? When it comes to talent or career, the best way forward is always your own way.

I got the idea for Super Fat Friend last year, inspired by living in Los Angeles and the city as a character in itself. I’ve long been a fan of comic book stories, romance, themes of justice, and light over darkness. Comic books are naturally serialized, but it’s been a long time since fiction made a mark in that way. I thought, why not bring back the thrill of waiting for the next chapter in the newspaper for a new generation? Many literary greats published their works this way—Dickens, Steinbeck, Twain, and even Leo Tolsoy’s massive epic War and Peace was published serialized over the course of several years before being sold as one volume. More recently, Frank Herbert’s Dune was serialized in Analog Science Fiction and Fact magazine before its publication as a novel. Audiences today gobble up episodic television; maybe now is the time for a new era of serialized fiction.

I am about to embark on probably the scariest thing a writer can do—publishing their work in a somewhat raw state in real time. But there is something thrilling in writing so vulnerably, and perhaps audiences will respond to bite-sized chunks of a story over time versus attempting a whole new novel from an unknown author at once. I am still juggling a lot with work and graduate school, so for now, I will aim for one chapter every 3-4 weeks. No matter how many read this, even if it’s zero people, I will see it through because I have stories in me, and there’s no point in keeping them caged. This is very experimental, but then again, so am I.

All that said, I can’t wait to share Super Fat Friend. The “fat friend” is the story archetype, usually a woman, who gets sidelined in favor of a more conventionally attractive main character. Oftentimes, they aren’t even as fat or unkempt as they are made out to be. Get ready for a heroine trained to give this stereotype a TKO. 🥊

Closing Thought: Though I am a Christian who happens to be a writer, I don’t write squeaky-clean “Christian Fiction.” I write people and situations as they would be, without being overly graphic or gratuitous. There will sometimes be language or disturbing sequences, but there will always be hope—my promise to you, dear Reader.

Story Synopsis

Sabrina Stolarz is an expert avoidant. Whether it’s fleeing her home city of Chicago after a traumatic loss, hiding her curvy frame beneath modest layers of clothing, or masking her feelings for a handsome history teacher, Sabrina can bob and weave from life in ways that would make even Sugar Ray Robinson drop his jaw.

Now living quietly as a school librarian in Los Angeles, Sabrina finally feels gloriously concealed. But after her only close friend gets attacked on a night out, she feels called to action to find the perpetrators.

Reeling from the adrenaline high of reviving her boxing skills and fighting crime on the streets, Sabrina is drawn into a world of elevated gang activity, trafficking, and becoming an overnight in-feed sensation. When she encounters another vigilante on an equal bent for revenge, the gloves really start to come off.

Super Fat Friend Vol. 1 drops Tuesday, March 18 here on Substack.

Note: This visual concept is just me fiddling around. I draw for journaling therapy. If you’re a real artist and feel inclined to throw down some fan art, I’m here for it! 😁